Entertainment

How Apple Should Handle the App Store Blacklist

The question of how Apple should use the App Store blacklist has been bandied about lately and so far, no one really has the answer. Should Apple act unilaterally and remove apps without any warning? Should it ask for user input? The questions are numerous and the answers are in short supply. I think it needs to have a full-fledged plan that’s made available to the public so developers and users alike will know what to expect.

So what exactly should Apple be doing? It should first start out with a real policy. How can it summarily remove applications from the App store without warning the developer or user? It doesn’t make any sense.

Included in that policy, it should develop an understanding between both the user and Apple that makes both entities work together to achieve the lofty goal of making it a better service for all parties involved.

First and foremost, Apple needs to install a “report” button that lets the users alert the company to ridiculous applications like “I am Rich” and helps them sift through the good and the bad.

By doing that, it also helps create a rapport between Apple and users, who have been kept in the dark so far about what’s really going on when it removes applications like NetShare, Box Office, and others. Let’s face it – users are downloading these applications and they have every right in the world to know what’s going on with them. I don’t think that’s asking too much.

Secondly, Apple needs to set parameters for how apps should be priced. I have no problem with developers assigning prices to their work, but $1,000 for an iPhone application that gives you a mantra isn’t worth $1, let alone $1,000.

So how does it achieve that goal? Easy: ask the users again. With each purchase, Apple should include a link taking users to a survey asking them if the app is worth the suggested price. This will give the users the opportunity to have a say in the matter that goes beyond simply buying an app or not, and also eliminates any suspicion by users that Apple is pulling down applications without cause.

Granted, many users will probably complain about pricing, so Apple will need to keep a level head and decide, based on customer response and developer input, if it’s really worth what developers are charging. I realize this sounds a bit anti-capitalist and freedom is being taken from developers by the retailer, but let's not forget that Apple has a vested interest in seeing people buy apps too. And if the companies are gouging you at checkout, Apple looks bad in the process too.

Lastly, Apple needs to give developers the opportunity to stand up for themselves. So far, Apple hasn’t given developers any chance to save their apps and has instead chosen to remove them without warning to anyone. By giving the developers the chance to respond and adjust issues (if need be), Apple will stop looking like the bad guy and start looking like the voice of reason – something it’s severely lacking right now.

There’s no easy solution to the App store and chances are, we won’t see any major moves for a while. But something obviously needs to be done and Apple needs to be at the center of that movement.

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